SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Illinois Governor JB Pritzker announced Wednesday he expects the state to move into a full “Phase 5” reopening next week on June 11, as previously announced.
Governor Pritzker said COVID-19 vaccinations are going well, and the numbers of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are dropping.
"We have declining numbers of people, cases, declining number of people in the hospital, declining numbers of people who are going to the hospital for the first time with COVID, so my expectation is that on June 11, as projected, we will move to Phase 5, which is a full reopening," Pritzker said.
But even as a full opening looms, Pritzker acknowledged some people are not going to go back to work right away.
The reasons vary, he said. While speaking in Peoria on Wednesday, Pritzker said some people aren’t vaccinated, and others who are vaccinated worry about exposure to people who have been inoculated.
On top of those reasons, he said, there are primarily women who have children at home.
"And it is difficult for them, as childcare is still ramping back up, to find the childcare that they need so that they can go out and get a job," Pritzker said. "So that's another portion of people. And then, you know, I think that there may be people who are on unemployment, right now, and aren't able to find a job that pays enough for them to pay their bills."
He said all reasons must be addressed; and a big part of the solution lies in getting as many people as possible vaccinated.
On Wednesday, state officials reported 478 new confirmed and probable cases of coronavirus, including nine additional deaths. Nearly 51 percent of Illinois adults are fully vaccinated.
The state’s “positivity rate” — a major barometer in showing whether infections are under control — is less than 2 percent.
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